The more watts you have... holding all other things the same... the better the first watt (or ten) will sound, especially with solid state. For me, loudness has nothing to do with why I have purchased high output amp... it is about the solidity and power when playing at normal volumes 60 - 80 db... not playing loud. I believe that with solid state amps, small transients can temporarily drain instantaneous power available. So, the more headroom the better they sound.
+1 Conrad Johnson